Prof. Zhan Yan Co-Leads Study Revealing Moon Volcanoes Degas for Years After Eruption
A collaborative study co-led by Professor Zhan Yan of CUHK’s Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, alongside Professor Ni Peng of UCLA, has overturned the long-held assumption that lunar volcanic glass beads degas only during their brief eruption flight. Through detailed analysis of the iconic orange volcanic glass beads from Apollo 17’s sample 74220, combined with computer modelling of diffusion, evaporation, and cooling processes, the team demonstrated that after these molten droplets fell back to the lunar surface, they were buried by surrounding pyroclastic debris that acted as an “incubator,” allowing them to cool slowly and continuously release volatiles—such as water, sulphur, chlorine, and fluorine—over a period of years rather than minutes. This finding, published in Nature Communications, suggests that previous estimates of the Moon’s internal volatile content may be too low, and that prolonged post-eruption degassing could contribute to transient lunar atmospheres and even play a role in the formation of polar water ice—offering new pathways for future lunar sample studies and exploration missions. The full paper is available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-69087-8
This work is also covered by a few newspapers and medias:
Sing Tao Daily 星島日報
The Standard
Ta Kung Pao 大公報
Sing Tao Headline 星島頭條
Hong Kong Standard
Hong Kong China News Agency 香港中通社
